A Very Good Reason
by dobegirl15
Summary: What was going through Topanga's head before her high school graduation? How could she possibly make a choice between Cory and Yale? This is my take on why she decided to do what she did! (Tried to avoid spoilers there...sorry for the vague summary lol) One shot.


**Hey guys! Hope your week is going well so far!**

 **I was watching some episodes from season 5 of Boy Meets World and a thought came to my head…**

 **What made Topanga propose?**

 **She could've just chosen to stay in Philadelphia, knowing that she and Cory would be together. But she didn't do that. She proposed.**

 **I started thinking about it and then…this happened. So this is how I think Topanga came to the idea that she should propose. It takes place at the end of season 5. Basically during the "Things Change" and "Graduation" episodes.**

 **Disclaimer: I did use scenes from the Graduation episode in this story. I did not write them!**

 **Alright, I hope you like it! :)**

I did it. I didn't think I'd ever do it, but I did it.

I got in to Yale.

Yale University. One of the most prestigious universities in the country.

But why did I do it?

I knew I didn't really want to go there. I'd always planned on staying with Cory. Even when we were broken up, I knew I wanted to stay. I just wanted to see if I would get in. I didn't actually want to go. Except I did. There was a little part of me that wondered what it would be like to say, "I go to Yale." What would it be like to graduate from Yale? I'd be surrounded by some of the greatest minds in the country.

The whole idea is breathtakingly amazing. Me at Yale University. It's always been a subtle dream of mine. One that I never actively went after, but one that would be amazing.

So when I was waitlisted, I didn't know what to think. They did want me. But I told myself that's all that would ever come of it. After all, what makes Topanga Lawrence special and stand out from the hundreds of thousands of other applicants?

Then I got accepted. How could I ever turn something like that down? This is quite possibly the most exciting thing that's ever happened in my life.

I just don't know what to do.

xxxXXXxxx

I walked in the door and my aunt was standing at the bookshelf.

"Hey, Aunt Pru," I greeted her.

"Hello, Topanga," she said, with a polite smile.

I set my backpack down next to the door and knelt down to unzip the front pocket. I took the letter out and held it in my hand for a second.

I took a deep breath. _Should I tell her? Is it even a possibility?_

I nodded to myself and stood up.

She was facing the bookshelf again, running her hand across the selection, obviously trying to choose the next one she wanted to read.

"How was school today?" she asked.

"It was good," I answered shakily.

"Did you go to Cory's after school?"

"Yeah," I answered.

Aunt Prudence nodded.

"Aunt Pru?" I said cautiously.

"Yes?" she said, turning to face me.

"I…I have something to tell you," I said, watching her face for her reaction.

"What is it? What's in your hand?"

"I got another letter from Yale today," I said, a hopeful smile coming to my face.

"Did you open it?"

I nodded.

"And?" she prodded.

"I got in," I said, starting to smile again.

"You got in?" Aunt Prudence said, smiling with me. "Wonderful, Topanga! I'm so proud of you!" she said, walking to me for a stiff hug.

"Thank you, Aunt Pru," I said, hugging her back. Though she was a little reserved, I knew she was sincere.

"You'd better start your acceptance letter!" Aunt Pru said.

I only looked up at her, unsure of what to say.

"Well, you are accepting, aren't you?" she asked, looking at me seriously.

"I don't know yet," I said quietly.

Aunt Pru raised her eyebrows and took a step back. "You don't know yet? Topanga, you were just accepted to Yale University. What don't you know?"

"I don't know if I want to go that far away," I said, still quiet.

"The distance won't be an issue, dear. It'll be difficult at first, but you'll get used to it and everything will be fine."

I nodded. "I know. It's just that I don't know if I'd be able to have a long distance relationship," I said, inwardly cringing at what she might say next.

"Topanga, that is the least of your worries right now. Your concern should be your education. You will get a wonderful education there. If you and Cory couldn't keep a long distance relationship, then it must not be meant to be."

I shook my head. "It's not that. I know that we would be able to. It's just that it would be so hard on both of us. I'd be miserable without him there."

"I don't think that's healthy," Aunt Pru said, shaking her head with concern.

"It's perfectly healthy, Aunt Prudence. When two people are in love, they can't be apart like that."

Aunt Prudence sighed. "Topanga, I know you believe you're in love with this boy. I understand that you have strong feelings for him. However, that does not negate your responsibility to yourself to further your education in the best manner that you can. It is simply not logical to stay here and attend Pennbrook. Yale is such a spectacular institution. I really do not see any choice presented to you. You applied to Yale. Obviously that means you want to go there. You would not have applied if you didn't. There is a part of you that wants to go there. There is a part of you that knows what is the right thing to do. Please listen to that."

"What if staying here with Cory is the right thing to do?" I asked defiantly.

"I suppose only you can answer that. But you must use your mind, Topanga. It has gotten you into Yale. It has not steered you wrong before. Your mind will tell you that Yale is the best decision you could make. You know this."

I nodded. "I know that Yale is a great school. I wouldn't have applied there if I didn't. But I also know that Pennbrook is a great school. And I know that Cory and I belong together. We love each other. I had to be away from him for a few weeks when my parents moved and it almost killed us both. I just don't know if I could go through that again. I have to think about this," I said, shaking my head.

Aunt Prudence did not look happy. "It is your decision. I cannot make it for you. However, you know my stance on the subject."

I nodded again. "Thank you for your input. I know you're just trying to help me."

Aunt Prudence nodded. "I only want what's best for you, Topanga. You must know that."

"I do. Thank you. I…I need to think this over."

I stood up and walked up the stairs to my room. I closed the door and sat down on my bed.

My head fell to my hands. I didn't know what to do.

I started thinking about everything that was going on in my life right now and all the changes that were happening.

 _I'm starting to understand why Cory was so upset about all this_ , I thought to myself.

 _What's more important to me?_

I lifted my head up and looked around my room. I saw all my academic achievements scattered around. Certificates hung on the walls and small trophies lined the back of my dresser. Academia was very important to me.

Then I saw the pictures. Scattered around my room were various pictures from different points in my life.

I stood up and walked to my dresser. There was a baby picture of me leaning against the wall. Then I looked next to it and saw one of the first ever pictures of Cory and me. We were probably two years old and we were playing in his backyard together. I smiled at it. I found that picture a few years ago in my mom's box of old photos. I had just started dating Cory and I thought it was cute to have a picture of us when we were little. I've treasured it ever since.

Next to that was a picture of us from middle school. One of our first dates. I smiled at the memory. There were five other photos, leading up to the most current picture of us at Chubbie's. We were on a date and Shawn took a picture of us. It was actually a very good picture, and Cory and I both looked very happy. It was before I found out about Yale.

I closed my eyes, remembering just a few weeks ago, when life was somehow much less complicated.

I went back to sit on my bed and looked at my nightstand. I picked up the picture frame that was set next to my alarm clock.

It was Cory's school picture. He wasn't quite ready for the camera, but he was already smiling. It was an interesting combination of a smile and a look of surprise. I chuckled, thinking about how cute he was. I set the picture back down.

I leaned back against my pillows and closed my eyes.

 _Cory_ , I thought. _Cory is more important to me than Yale._ I opened my eyes. It felt good to think that. It felt safe, like I was being held in his arms. If I could be with him, I would be happy and safe.

"I'm going to stay here with Cory," I said out loud. I nodded to myself and breathed a sigh of relief. I still felt a string of uncertainty, but I shook my head to clear it away. It was done. It was decided.

xxxXXXxxx

I had told Cory that I was staying, but he wouldn't accept that. He kept telling me to look at all these things about Yale and consider my decision carefully. He didn't want me to give up a chance to attend Yale for him. He didn't want to be responsible for that.

At first I thought he was just being a supportive boyfriend, but then he printed information out for me and continued to tell me to make the right decision. I knew he wanted what was truly best for me.

But that's the thing. Everybody wants me to do what's best for me. But what _is_ best for me? Is Yale best for me? Or is Cory best for me? Why do I have to choose?

I didn't tell Aunt Prudence that he was being supportive. I didn't want her to influence me anymore.

So when I walked in the door, I said, "Hi, Aunt Pru!" and kept walking up the stairs.

"Hi, Topanga. Going upstairs already?"

"Yeah, I have a lot of homework," I lied.

Aunt Prudence nodded and said, "Alright. Please be down for dinner."

"I will." I continued up the stairs and into my room. I closed the door behind me and sat on my bed. I unzipped my backpack and got the folder out that Cory had given me.

I opened the folder and saw that there were pages and pages of information. I knew he must love me an awful lot if he spent all that time printing these pages out when he didn't even want me to go.

There was everything in that packet of information. There were statistics of all kinds- job placement after graduating from Yale, the percent of applicants who get accepted, how much an education there costs, how much financial aid I could get- everything you could ever think of. Then there was an article from a newspaper about Yale and how great it is.

After looking at all of this, it made me question my decision.

 _If Cory is really that supportive, maybe I owe it to him and to myself to go. He did all this work for me to encourage me to be my best._

Then I had the thought that changed my mind again.

 _If he is so supportive of me that he would allow himself to go through this pain just so I could go here, maybe he's showing me that he's the best decision_.

I have never met another person in my entire life who supports me as much as he does. He would put himself through the agony of a long-distance relationship because he wants me to get this education. If that's not selflessness and love, then I don't know what is. Maybe he is the decision I should make.

I decided I needed to talk to him about it. I needed to find out if he actually was being supportive just to be supportive. I needed to know if he would be okay if I went. I needed to know if he truly thought this was the right decision.

xxxXXXxxx

I talked to Cory the next day at school. He told me he would be okay if I went. He said what could be a more important decision than Yale?

I hadn't told him about what I thought of the whole thing. I just wanted to see what his reaction was.

He passed the test. I had smiled at him and said thank you.

He gave me his blessing. I could go to Yale if I wanted and Cory and I would be okay.

I was sitting at a table in the library, going over all this in my mind.

I was supposed to be editing my valedictorian speech, but I couldn't concentrate. I had written a good one before, but now it had to be better. It had to be from a future student at Yale.

Except I kept thinking about Cory.

I knew the right thing was to go to Yale. I was supposed to go to Yale and be an excellent student. That was what my head said. Aunt Prudence was right. All signs point to Yale.

But the idea of leaving Cory here in Philadelphia pained me. I couldn't imagine being without him. What if something happened to our relationship because of the long distance? What if I caused our relationship to go bad because I went to Yale?

That last thought made me start to panic, so I quickly stood up and packed my things into my backpack. Before I could get all my notes in my bag, I knew I had to walk around. I left the library and began walking around the school.

I took some deep breaths and tried to make myself relax. As I walked past Mr. Feeny's office, I saw the light on.

I knocked on his door and opened it. Mr. Feeny was packing things into boxes.

"Mr. Feeny, hey. I was in the library and I saw your light on. What are you still doing here?"

"Just packing up a few things," he said, putting his yearbook in a box. "What on earth are you doing in the library?"

"I was working on my valedictorian speech," I said, sitting down.

Mr. Feeny waved that idea away. "Oh, your speech will be fine. Give yourself a break!"

"Yeah, but now that I'm going to Yale, everyone's going to expect it to be like from…someone who's going to Yale. Fine's not going to be enough," I explained.

"Miss Lawrence, what did you actually come here to ask me?" he asked, knowing I needed something.

I hadn't known I did before, but now it seemed obvious.

"I don't know what to do. Should I go to Yale?" I asked seriously.

"If you're asking me if Yale is one of the finest academic institutions in the country, I would have to say, 'duh.'"

That made me slightly smile. "That's not why I'm asking."

"Well, if you're asking me whether or not you would be successful there, Yale wouldn't have accepted you if they didn't think you could live up to the challenge."

I shook my head. "That's not why I'm asking."

"I tell you what, I retire right now," Mr. Feeny said, beginning to laugh. "What do you want?"

"If I knew what I wanted I wouldn't have come to you," I admitted.

"Well then, listen very carefully," he began. "Unless you have a very good reason for not going to Yale, you should go."

I couldn't stop a smile from spreading across my face. I knew my answer.

"Thanks, Mr. Feeny," I said, grinning.

xxxXXXxxx

I practically ran back to the library to get my things and packed them up quickly, a smile still stuck on my face. I got home as quickly as I possibly could and ran upstairs before my aunt even knew I was home.

I closed the door to my room and threw my backpack against the wall. I jumped on my bed with excitement and grinned, looking around my room. I was happy.

I hadn't felt so good about this decision before, but somehow, Mr. Feeny made everything clear.

"I'm not going to Yale. I'm going to Pennbrook. I have a very good reason to stay here. And his name is Cory Matthews. And I'm going to be with Cory forever," I said excitedly, but quietly, to myself.

Then I remembered. _Cory_.

He didn't want to be the reason I stayed here.

My smile faded and I leaned against the backboard of my bed.

If Cory knew that I chose him over Yale like this, he would never let me. He would be happy, but he would feel guilty. He would think that he set me back.

 _I have to show him that he's not going to set me back. I have to show him that he's the best decision I could make. But how?_

I racked my brain, searching for something to tell him. My mind came up blank.

 _Okay, I just have to figure out why he would think that. Then I can combat that._

I thought about why he might feel guilty. Because I would have more options for careers if I graduated from Yale. Because it was an amazing opportunity to be surrounded by great people. Because if someone goes to Yale, their life is pretty much set for greatness. Because they know they are going to have a great life.

 _I know I'm going to have a great life too_ , I thought. _A great life with Cory. How do I show him?_

Then the idea came to me. I gasped, shocked that I would think that. How could I ever think that?

 _Do I realize I'm 18 years old and graduating high school right now?_

But the more I thought about it, the better it sounded- the more it made sense.

I thought about Mr. Feeny's advice again.

 _Unless you have a very good reason for not going to Yale…_

This could be a very good reason. Couldn't it? This would show Cory that he is the most important to me. He means everything to me. He is the very good reason. I know we're going to be together for the rest of our lives. And this creates a very good reason for staying with him.

When I thought about us breaking up, it made me panic. I couldn't handle that feeling. I cannot be away from him. He means more to me than anything else. More than Yale. He is my reason.

 _No. This is crazy_ , I thought.

Then I remembered everything Cory and I have been through and I chuckled.

 _I kissed him for the first time when we were handcuffed together. He chased me all the way to Disney World. I moved in with my aunt to stay close to him._

This only seemed like the next thing in our crazy story.

I will be safe with Cory and we will be together forever. There is no doubt in my mind. I have a very good reason to go to Pennbrook. I choose what means the most to me. I choose happiness. I choose the life we promised we'd have. I choose him.

xxxXXXxxx

It was our graduation day and I was more anxious and worried than I'd ever been in my entire life. Not only were we graduating, and not only was I the valedictorian, but I was going to tell him my decision. I didn't know how he'd react. It was so hard to not talk to him about it.

Suddenly we were sitting in the bleachers all together.

I couldn't wait any more.

After I introduced Shawn for his speech, I turned to Cory.

"Cory, I know what I want to do with my life," I said seriously.

"Sh," he said. "Shawn's speaking in public. This will never happen again in our lives."

What he didn't understand was that neither would this moment that I was about to create.

From what I could concentrate on enough to hear, Shawn's speech was amazing. It was touching and so perfectly well-written. I was so proud of him.

When Shawn sat back down, Eric decided to…take over the ceremony. He was a mix of entertaining and embarrassing. Let's just say my mouth dropped open in shock a few times.

Finally, he was finished and Mr. Feeny took the ceremony back into his control, to all of our relief.

He began reading all of our names. Shawn got his diploma. I walked across the stage to get my diploma.

I watched Cory and Angela get their diplomas.

Then Cory turned to me.

"So you were going to say something. Was it important?" he asked.

"You mean that I decided what I want to do with my life?"

"Yeah, that," he said with a small smile.

"Mr. Feeny said I should go to Yale unless I have a really good reason not to," I began.

"Well, there isn't any good reason," Cory said. I could see the defeat in his eyes.

"Actually there is," I said, my heart beginning to race. "Cory?"

"What?" he asked. He was scared.

Mr. Feeny announced our class and Cory started to stand, but I pulled his arm back down.

I asked him, "Will you marry me?"

 **Oh, Corpanga. Love them so much.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the story! Please review! It takes a few seconds and it gives me important feedback! Your review means a lot to me, regardless of if you liked the story or not.**

 **With that being said, PLEASE review!**

 **Thank you so much!**

 **Enjoy your weekend! Stay awesome!**


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